Phillies
We appear to be witnessing the end of Jimmy Rollins’ career
Published20 Mar 2017
By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor 
For someone that won a league MVP, a World Series, was part of six division winning teams and is the Philadelphia Phillies all-time hits leader, this is a rather unspectacular way for Jimmy Rollins' borderline Hall of Fame career to end. But as most athletes will tell you, the end usually isn't pretty.
With just 12 days until the San Francisco Giants open their season against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Rollins would need a miracle to make the club out of Spring Training. The 38-year-old non-roster invitee has gotten work all over the infield this spring, but his bat, which needed to be pretty impressive for him to make the team, has fallen flat.
In 29 at-bats during Spring Training, Rollins is batting just .103, with one home run and two RBIs. This comes after he slashed just .221/.295/.329 in a 41-game stint with the Chicago White Sox in 2016. A year before that, Rollins slashed .224/.285/.358 with a -14.5 oWAR in his lone season with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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The Giants were always a curious fit for Rollins. While he wasn't vying to be their starting shortstop, they are a team that he would seemingly only be able to start at short a max of 10-15 times in a season, with Brandon Crawford having played at least 149 games in three out of the last four seasons. Eduardo Nunez, who is in a contract year, had a very nice 2016 season and the only way that he would move off of third is if Joe Panik didn't bounce back at second base, which feels unlikely. Even in that scenario, Connor Gillaspie or 26-year-old Kelby Tomlinson would likely get at-bats over Rollins.
Beyond those already on the roster, Aaron Hill, who is also a non-roster invitee, had a fairly effective 2016. Hill's .242 Spring Training average may not allow him to make the Giants, but he will likely find his way onto some MLB roster after hitting .262 with 10 home runs and 38 RBIs in 2016.
Even if Rollins didn't make the Giants, a strong spring may have caught the eyes of another MLB team, allowing him to either be traded to said team or sign with them after being cut by the Giants. With such a poor spring, that door appears to have slammed shut as well.
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Assuming this is the end of his career, Rollins shouldn't feel too badly. He said earlier this spring that he wanted to play until the 'uniform was taken off of his back,' which may be what is happening now. All athletes struggle to adjust to life after their careers end, but in some ways it's easier for them to move forward when they know that going back isn't an option. Barring Rollins making the Giants — which would be shocking at this point — going back to playing won't be an option for the Phillies' legend.
Rollins will also have plenty of options to remain around the game after his career. He made some guest appearances on FS1 last summer and eventually worked on TBS' coverage of the American League playoffs. Rollins is a natural on television, which comes as little surprise when you consider his infectious personality. He's also well respected around the league, so if he wanted to be a coach or have another role within an organization, he could probably do that as well. Of course, he may just want to take some time off.
Regardless of what route he chooses after his career, it appears that "after his career" will be starting within the next few weeks for Rollins, nearly a decade after he was beginning his finest individual season.
